Ash to Sue for "Whiteface" on Elle Cover?

The racial controversy surrounding Ash’s face on the cover of a leading fashion magazine has just gotten darker.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is apparently furious with the bleaching botch-up that the fashion bible carried on her face. Not one to show emotions easily, the former Miss World is visibly upset when told about this possible doctoring. Says a source close to her, “Aishwarya’s first reaction was disbelief.

She believed that these things don’t happen anymore. Not in this day and age when women are recognized for their merit, and not for the colour of their skin. She is currently verifying this skin-whitening allegation. If there is any proof of this, she might even take action.”

Ash has been caught up with her father being ill. As a result, she has not had the time to ascertain the veracity of this race row.

Apparently the doctoring was noticed by fans and not the media. Avid fashion victims grabbed copies of this month’s issue of the magazine, only to notice that the beauty pageant was not looking right; she was looking white. Enraged, they began posting livid messages online.

They felt that her image had been doctored by the magazine to appease Caucasian standards of beauty. It might be recalled that in September this year, the US edition of the same magazine featured on its cover an African-American actress, Gabourey Sidibe, with a much paler complexion.

This created an uproar on the internet. When questioned on this, the magazine claimed that it had not whitened the Academy Award-nominated actress’s skin any more than those of the other models (white) clicked along with her.

Closer home, a close friend of Ash says, “No one in any part of the world looks at Ash with culture-specific eyes. Though she has represented India on many international forums she is regarded as a world citizen. She is clearly the global face of the contemporary Indian woman. The last thing she’d want is to have a global image coloured by a racial suggestion.”

Ash recently shot an ad in Rome for a wrist watch brand with Kate Winslet and Taiwanese model Chi-Ling Lin. Wonder who was the fairest of them all in this commercial.